Improvement in magazine fire-arms



J. GRAY.

Magazine Gun.

' Patented July 4, 1865.

JosHUA GRAY, 0F MEDFORD, ASSIGNOR TonnnsnLF, E. H. nnnannen,

()F BOSTON, AND W. e. LANGDON, or MALDEN, MASSACHUSETTS, AND s s. BUOKLIN, OF PROVIDENCE, enema ISLAND.

IMPROVEMENT IN MAGAZINE FIRE-ARMS.

, Specificatiouforming part of Letters Patent No. 48.622, dated July 4, 1865.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that 1, JOSHUA GRAY, of Medrora, in the county or Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful'Improvement in Magazine RepeatingRI- fles; and I do hereby declare that the followin g is a full, clear, and ex'actdescription of the construction and operation of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in

Figure l is a side elevation of that part of a rifle towhich my invention relates. is a longitudinal central section, of the same, and Fig. 3 is a side elevation of a metal-cased cnrtridger Like parts are indicated by the same letters in all the drawings, which are intended to be full-sized. I

The nature of my invention consists in the employment of a side opening, L, for the introduction of cartridges in the outer tube, 0, of the magazine, so that the inner tube (which contains the spring and follower) may never have to be removed, and can be prevented,by means of a stop-pin, c, fromever working out and being lost 5 and in so shaping said opening L in the magazine that it will be impossi: ble to insert .a cartridge wrong endforemos't, whereby] prevent all possibility of ever'clogging the rifle by improper loading in the excitement of action, in the cold, in the dark, or at any other time. I

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my improvements, I will'now proceed to describe the construction and operation of the same.

A represents the barrel of the rifle; B,'a

Fig. 2v

shape of whichcorresponds with a longitudinal central section of the metal-eased cartridge L, (shown in Fig. 3,) and just large enough to barely admit the said cartridge when it is presented in the proper position-- t'. a, when the expanded percussion end m m of the cartridge: is so presented to the opening as toenter the corresponding recesses m m. If the cartridge, thus constructed, be pre sented in any other position to the opening L, it is. obvious that the expanded percussionflange m cannot enter it, and thus it will be impossible to insert a cartridge under any circumstances wrongend first; and when it is remembered how many rifles, especially in the dark, coldrorexcitement of action, are wrongly loaded, clogged, and thereby rendered Worse than useless, the utility of my improvement cannot be too highly rated.

D is the inner tube, provided with the usual follower F and spiral spring g. The diameter of this tube is such as to allow it to just slide with freedom in the magazine 0. The relative length of this inner tube is shown in Fig. 2. It is prevented from ever coming entirely out of the magazine 0 .by means of a stop-pin, c, which is fast in the said magazine, and projects therefrom into a longitudinal slot, j,,in said inner tube, as clearly shown in Fig. 2.

The follower F is prevented from ever being thrown out of the inner tube, D, by means of the pin h, which also plays with freedom in the longitudinal slot j.

The full lines in Figs. 1 and 2 represent the inner tube drawn outfar enough to allow the eartridges'to be inser'tedin the opening L,below the follower F.

E is the'capor cover of the outer end of the inner tube, D, shaped as clearly shown in .Figs. 1 and-2: When the inner tube is forced into the magazine so that the cap E shall be in the position shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 1, it. is held in place by means of the spring-latch N, which enters the same and catches onto a rib or flange.

When it is required to draw out the inner tube, 1), the spring-latch N is pressed in .by

the thumb or finger, which leaves it free to slide into the position shown in Fig. 2.

a saws Having thus described the natlire of'my intheir equivalents, to prevent the inner tube, venti'ou, what Lclaim as new, and desire to se- D, from ever coming out of the magazine 0,

cure by LettersTatent, is-- substantially as described.

1. S0 sha pin the openin Lin the magazine that. it wiif be impossibfia to insert a cam- JOSHUA GRAY tridge wrong end first, substantially as de- Witnesses: scribed. N. AMEs,

23The slot or stop j and a pin or stop, 6, or GEO. R. CLARKE. 

